The holidays are now over and we are looking at a new year; that means it is time to start to make our riding plans for 2012. In the past week or so, I have been talking to some riding friends to see what their plans are for the coming year.  Some are going racing while others are just planning some recreational riding. Personally, I intend on simply riding more, since another obligation is starting to lighten up for me. Whether it is racing or trail riding, I will be out having fun with family and friends.

ATV

Kyler is the most serious quad rider with whom I regularly ride. He likes racing and has not slowed down in the winter months. This winter he has been running a winter hare scramble series on his four-wheeler with the Valley Dirt Rider’s Series in Berthoud, Colorado. In fact, I had invited him to ride this past Saturday at the Bijou, but he declined since he was preparing his quad for a race the next day.

Hare scramble is not the only form of racing Kyler is going to participate in this year. On January 28, he will be attending an Arenacross race in Denver at the National Western complex. This football field sized track will be a change from the vast desert-like hare scramble courses he has become accustomed to over the past year or so. It will be interesting to see how he fares in this type of race.

Once the warmer months are upon us, Kyler will be racing the Colorado Off-Road Championship Series (CORCS). This is a hare scramble type of race; so it is simple - the fastest rider in each class wins the class, and there is an overall race winner. Kyler has led his class in series points in the past; I’m sure he will be at or near the top of his class in 2012.

The event Kyler is most excited about is the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) event he is going to enter. This is The Mammoth in Park City, Kentucky on April 28 and 29. Since he decided to do this, he has hardly stopped talking about it. Not only is Kyler excited about it, I am excited for him. For many years I have watched these races on television and thought how much fun those trails would be to ride. He is not only going to get to run his ATV tires through these trails, but he is going to get to race against some of the best ATV riders from all over the country. This should turn out to be something he will remember for the rest of his life.

Motocross

My friend Mark will be racing in the Rocky Mountain Motocross Association circuit again this year. He will be piloting his Honda CRF 450R as he navigates the senior class; the senior class means he is on the north end of forty, just like me. Mark tells me that he likes to participate in the races not to win, but to just go out and have some fun. He has established quite the camaraderie with the other fellows in his class. He says that for the most part, these guys are just out to have fun and be outside. Mark doesn’t make every race on the schedule and has no sponsors.  He goes out to test himself against the other racers; also, he likes to just to be outside on Sunday afternoon.

The RMXA is somewhat of a local race circuit here in Colorado; the most that Mark will have to travel for a race will be about 150 miles one way. He usually leaves early in the morning for the track and comes back home late in the evening. He really enjoys what he does and looks forward to spring coming so that he can go racing.

Enduro

Mike, who was at Taylor Park, is looking at running an enduro in the desert near Grand Junction in late March. Originally, we thought this would be a hare scramble; however, we very recently received information that it will be an enduro. The difference being that an enduro has check points and special tests that need to be completed. The person with the fewest points wins the race. As mentioned earlier, in a hare scramble, the fastest rider is the winner.

The Grand Junction race is the event that Mike has been trying to talk me into entering. I am still considering it, since I am eligible for the senior class. The thing to remember about the senior class is that those gentlemen may be the best and fastest riders. These guys have many years of experience on motorcycles. Most did not start riding yesterday; they may have thirty plus years of riding under their belts. I keep thinking I may enjoy writing about racing more than participating. Mike keeps telling me it would be better to race; it would make a better story. I will decide in the next month or so what I want to do.

If this enduro or other Rocky Mountain Enduro Circuit events don’t work out for Mike and me, we may look at doing the same series (CORCs) as Kyler.  There are motorcycle classes offered in that series; in fact this may be the series that we put my son Joey in later this year after he has had more time aboard his new Honda motorcycle. Joey keeps asking about racing; a hare scramble may be the way for him to go since he is all about going fast.

Trail Riding

Taylor Park is on the list for this coming summer. Dave, Mike and I who were all at Taylor last summer have already been kicking around some dates. For Dave, he says there will be absolutely no racing for him; he is happy just zipping up and down the trails for recreation. It looks like this year our Taylor trip will be in July, rather than August. The reason for the earlier date is that some others who go to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally would join us in Taylor Park if the dates did not coincide. My old friend Jason, who joined us at the Bijou last week, is one of those folks. He goes to Sturgis every year on his Harley Davidson, but he would also like to go to Taylor a few weeks earlier with us to ride his Honda CRF450X.

Conclusion

It looks like my friends have some fun in store for 2012! It seems like this is going to be an eventful OHV year for my circle of riding buddies. Whether we are racing or just out trail riding, we will enjoy ourselves. With as much wear and tear is ahead of all the machines, winter maintenance will be important to ensure that we have trouble-free trips - especially a thorough check of the ATV and motorcycle tires. I’m already getting tired just thinking about it; but it will be fun!